


when all else fails

by exyjunkies



Category: Green Creek Series - T.J. Klune
Genre: Established Relationship, Fluff, M/M, Romantic Fluff, and get the alone time they deserve, best alphas ever, i really don't know which tags are supposed to be used lmao, wherein joe and ox are soft for one another
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2018-10-24
Updated: 2018-10-24
Packaged: 2019-08-06 17:24:07
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 2,433
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/16391999
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/exyjunkies/pseuds/exyjunkies
Summary: An afternoon in which Joe and Ox spend time to make up for the time they’ve lost, because they never got to be young and in love.





	when all else fails

Muting his bonds always made Ox feel uneasy. He knew it was an Alpha thing, and that his worry was more rooted in instinct than it was in logic. Even though he was still in Green Creek, they ( _packpackpack_ ) felt so far away, and the clear afternoon sky did almost nothing to appease his anxiety.

“You two need to get out of here,” Gordo’s sentiment this morning rang through his mind, equal parts scolding and concerned. Mark was beside him, on the couch, reading the newspaper. One of Gordo’s feet was up on Mark’s lap.

Joe, on his reclining armchair, had almost growled in reply, if it hadn’t been for Elizabeth putting a hand on his shoulder and saying, “Take some time away from here. We can hold down the fort for one measly afternoon.”

Ox and Joe had looked at each other, both unsure about leaving their pack behind, even more so about the concept of ‘alone time’.

More specifically, the kind of alone time that included them leaving the house.

Jessie had done a thumbs up, and Chris, coming into the room with a mug of coffee, had said, “Wouldn’t be such a bad idea, dude. We’ll be fine.”

After several agreements from the rest of the pack, as well as Rico’s lighthearted, “Yeah,  _hermano_ , when was the last time you guys banged without us listening?”, Ox did several check-ups on his pack, trying to find one reason why he and Joe would have to stay home. Maybe Jessie needed help with checking students’ homework. Maybe the timber wolf needed to be told to get off of Carter’s back, restless and needy. Maybe Tanner needed help with that sedan in the shop. Maybe Elizabeth could use an extra hand in preparing dinner. 

But with everyone wanting for them to take a break, he had found none. Ox had spent around ten minutes on the front porch waiting for Joe, only to see Joe being actively shoved out the door by Carter.

“Just leave for a bit, bro,” Carter had grunted, and Joe had a scowl on his face. “You’re too much of a worrywart.”

The timber wolf was beside Carter, growling at whatever made Carter agitated. Carter had jutted his chin out at Joe. “Yeah, stupid mutt, help me get my brother outta here.”

It was entertaining to watch, really. After the both of them had been kicked out of the house, Ox had sighed, and Joe closed his eyes to mute his bonds. It had taken a couple miles away from the house for Ox to do the same.

“Thinking about them too?” Joe asked, moving his thumb against Ox’s.

They were in one of the many clearings of their forest, hands intertwined and backs against the soft green grass. The magic of the place thrummed against their bodies - it came in short, fast ripples, or long, continuous waves. A lady bug sat quietly on the back of Ox’s other hand, and Ox kept that hand on his stomach.

“It’s hard not to.”

“I know. But Mom did say not to worry.” Ox closed his eyes. He breathed in, and the air smelled like fresh mint and coconut. It even sounded like there was slow-going music in between the sounds of nature.

“Joe.”

“Yeah?”

“You know I wouldn’t have had it any other way. Right?” And Ox felt Joe shift to look at him, even as his eyes were closed. Their heartbeats were one - Joe’s a deep, constant thumping of a born werewolf, and Ox’s a slightly softer, more human back-and-forth that moved in between each of Joe’s heartbeats.

“Well, I know I’d change a few things,” murmured Joe, moving to nuzzle Ox’s neck. His nose was against Ox’s claim mark. “We could’ve had so much time.”

Ox thought his chest would tighten at the subtle reminder, but all he felt was a pulsing green. He was done mourning what they’d lost a long time ago. Zen Alpha internalization and all.

“Maybe it was time we needed to lose. You know. To get  _here_.”

In response, Joe hummed against his neck, and put a soft kiss to Ox’s jaw.

Then, “I have a question.”

Ox opened one eye to look at Joe. “Yeah?”

“Do you ever wonder? About if we hadn’t met that day?”

A ten-year-old boy had once been around his neck, sniffing as much as he could anywhere and everywhere. Joe was a happy mess of youth and noise, and it off-set all the other days Ox went home. Ox remembered feeling overwhelmed - how could a kid be this fascinated by him? By  _someone like him_? He wasn’t—

“Stop that,” Joe muttered, a small growl in the back of his throat. “You are  _everything_.”

“Smooth move with the mind-reading, Joe,” Ox replied, rolling his eyes. The anger didn't faze him one bit. Fucking Alphas.

He himself was an Alpha, but still. Fucking Alphas.

“Yeah, yeah,” Joe rolled his head back down on the grass. Ox felt the red drain out of him as quickly as it came. “Mates, remember?”

"And to answer your question," Ox continued, letting go of Joe's hand. He moved his other hand to let the ladybug down on the grass gently, before moving to prop himself up on one hand. "Life would've been  _so different_  if I hadn't met you that day."

Joe was looking up at him, one hand behind his head. He had let his hair grow longer than usual, and Ox didn't have to tell him he loved it.

" _God_. You were  _sixteen_ , Ox." Joe smiled softly, something he hadn't done in days, and Ox wanted to bottle it up and keep it.

"I would've become some everyday guy, working the garage, even after graduation." Ox shrugged. "I didn't really have any of those fancy, out-of-this-world dreams kids usually had."

"Mm. You would’ve been a great human. Head of Gordo’s. Big ol’ boss man that didn’t let anyone get in his way.”

“Damn right. And  _you_  would’ve been... Alpha of all. Up and away from here. Probably mated to someone else. Where would you be stationed?”

 “Somewhere far from here. I don’t know. Dad never told me. Also,  _ha_. Alpha of all that couldn’t speak for shit?” Joe shrugged. He took Ox’s free hand and dragged it across his belly, his fingers feeling the calluses on Ox’s fingers. “I wouldn’t have been appointed.”

“Then some other person would’ve helped you find the reason to speak again,” Ox murmured, looking down at their hands, aimlessly tangling and untangling.

“No offense to Hypothetical Mate of Mine, but they’re not you.”

Ox tamed the grin his face was about to give out, and went for a scoff. “Sap.”

“I told you. Candy canes and pinecones. Epic—”

“—and awesome. Yeah, Joe,” and Ox felt it then, a sudden rush of warmth, spreading throughout his chest. Maybe it was the cheesiness of this moment. Maybe it was the rush of emotions coming from Joe. Maybe it was happiness. He didn’t know. But it felt amazing anyway.

He leaned down and touched his forehead to Joe. “Thank Christ we found each other.”

 _PackLoveMateMineMineMine_  sounded through Ox’s mind, and, slowly, Ox intertwined their hands together. Joe leaned up to peck Ox on the mouth, short and sweet.

And then, even in the deep ease of the moment. Ox felt it.

There was rustling, somewhere between the trees. It was faint, but Ox heard it, along with the slight crunch of leaves. A single branch snapped, presumably because it was stepped on. Ox's jaw clenched.

And yet Joe remained calm as ever. Ox was slightly confused. “Did you hear that, Joe?” he said, a warning lining his words.

“Of course I did, Ox. We have the same senses.”

"Anything you’re not telling me?” Ox was already sitting up, his hand still in Joe’s, sniffing the air. There were around four, five heartbeats other than theirs.

He wasn’t counting on having to do it now, but Ox was ready to wolf out whenever he had to.

"It's not anything bad, you know," Joe replied, but Ox really wasn't ready to have his day turned inside out by some goddamn—

And then Ox heard the first few notes of a song. Instruments he hadn’t heard live in months. The music felt like the hug of a warm cotton blanket, like the comfort of a cup of hot coffee. It was almost as loud as how an orchestra would be, except Ox knew it was his hearing that emphasized each note. It was soothing, and it flowed through their surroundings, as if it belonged there all along.

Ox... wasn’t super into music. But with his wolf senses, he could tell apart the sounds. And for the lack of other words to describe them, he found them  _beautiful._ A strings of a guitar, a bow on a violin, and then a flute, working together and weaving a melody that made Ox’s heart stutter. The birds in the sky went to perch on tree branches, cocking their heads and doing tiny hops.

“Joe,  _oh my God_ —”

 “I was going to write you some long ass letter,” Joe said, sitting up too, and his gaze was forward. He blinked once, then looked down. As if he was nervous. “But I’m not exactly like Dad, you know. When it came to words. Between the both of us, he was always the one better at verbalizing thoughts. Hell, I've  _stopped_  talking to people for months on end. But then, ever since I met you, I never stopped wanting to say...  _something_. There was always  _something_  that I wanted you to know. The words always got stuck on my tongue, and I always promised myself that I was going to try and tell you later on, but... well. Life got in the way. But even after we mated, I never stopped feeling the things that went unsaid.

"Remember when I asked Maggie's permission to court you?" Joe asked, and Ox felt his cheeks warm up a bit. "The paper that I was holding had this entire  _poem_ , copied out from Dad's favorite poetry book. I was supposed to read it after the entire confession, which he had helped me with too. But then I got a  _little_  carried away. Haha. Poetry was never really my style anyway."

Joe let go of Ox's hand, and pulled himself up on one leg to stand up. He dusted off his jeans with both hands, and looked in the direction of the hidden musicians. 

"A few of your Omegas were for the idea of us taking a break, and agreed to help with surprising you," Joe said, and Ox wasn't fighting his smile now, and was instead letting it spread all across his face. Joe reached out with one hand, eyes blue and fierce, calmness and passion radiating off of him in waves.

His gaze said  _let us have this_ , and it was a lot for Ox to take in.

Ox took his hand, and let out a surprised laugh as Joe pulled him upright all too suddenly. He bumped into Joe's chest, and Joe went "Woops," before he stepped back a bit and put both hands on Ox's shoulders.

"Do you even  _know_  how to dance, Joe—"

"Uh, you rock back and forth on both feet, and you follow the music. What's so hard about that?"

Laughing softly, Ox placed his hands on Joe's hips, and moved closer. Joe put both arms around Ox's neck, and closed his eyes. Above them, the sky started to show the signs of an early night. The music seemed to be holding them in its gentle hands, and leading the way for the both of them.

For once, both Alphas were not in the position to lead, nor did they feel like they needed to be. It was a change of pace that Ox hadn't had in a while, ever since he became an Alpha.

"So," Ox mumbled in Joe's ear, slowly wrapping his arms around Joe's waist. "this is nice."

"Like hell it should be," Joe replied, and Ox felt him push back on their bond, filling it with everything that he felt.

The music lilted against the knowing sounds of the forest, and the harmony was a lot richer than when it was just the instruments. Birds cheerily chirped along to the beat. Whistles of the wind went along with the tune of the flute. And Joe, head slightly crooked into Ox's neck, was more at peace than he was in months.

"You're not so bad on your feet," Joe commented, breath warm against Ox's neck.

" _Someone_  has to hold you up."

And Joe smiled, taking it for what it was, not as an insult. Ox looked up, and saw the sun setting, kind and orange-red. It was nearly time for the both of them to head back. And when they did come back, they'd be greeted on the road by Team Human. Maybe some teasing from Rico, definitely a fist bump from Carter and eyebrow waggling from Kelly. Robbie would be setting the table, and Jessie's head would pop out of the kitchen, yelling for someone to help her and Elizabeth with the potatoes.

They would be coming back to their family. They would be coming  _home_.

"I love you," Joe said, lifting his head to look Ox in the eye. A flash of red briefly passed through his eyes. "For holding me up."

And because Ox was never good with words, because he sometimes felt dumb and said stupid things, he kissed Joe in reply. He hoped he'd be able to say back everything he wanted to. He hoped it was enough.

But nothing ever really was. They were two Alphas - two beings that never knew when the world stopped, or if it ever ended at all. And they were always going to keep going, always going to go up against what needed to be pushed or prodded. Pack was important. This place and this magic was important. What they had between each other was important. But ever since he met the ten-year-old boy on the road, Ox somehow already knew his life was always, always going to be  _more_.

Ox didn't know exactly what this  _more_  was, but with Joe, he was absolutely willing to continue finding out.

He pulled back, and put his forehead against Joe's. "I would never want to live my life doing anything else," Ox murmured, because he needed to say it. Because it was true.

And because for now, that would have to be enough.

**Author's Note:**

> Leave a kudos/head on over to [my Tumblr](http://exyjunkies.tumblr.com) if you liked this! Feel free to send in prompts~


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